Everyone Loves a Challenge
by Kryptonian-Suckerpunch
Summary: Draco's favorite thing was pissing off Granger. With them having to share a room as head-boy and head-girl, there were plenty of opportunities, and he was intent on using them. (DracoXHermione. Rated T to be safe, reviews highly encouraged!)
1. Roomies

Draco loved getting a rise out of Hermione. Everyone described Hermione as a 'level-headed' girl, and Draco took that as a challenge every time he heard it.

And it definitely was a challenge. She was frustratingly calm whenever he insulted her, the only indication of it bothering her was the slight change in her facial expressions. It took time, but he always got her to yell eventually. Her voice would heighten a pitch as she yelled at him, making Draco laugh until she got frustrated and stormed off.

He'd done this countless times since they were first years. It was a bit of work, considering that he needed new and harsh insults every time, but the pleasure and feeling of accomplishment he got when she got angry made all his effort worth it. Of course, sometimes Potter and Weasley would interrupt his fun, insulting him for bothering their precious Granger. Draco would roll his eyes and walk away, knowing that sometime later he would be able to have his fun again.

It wasn't until he was head boy that he really started questioning his motives. Why was getting a rise out of her so satisfactory? He'd never thought about. He settled that it was nice knowing that he could get a reaction out of Hermione Granger, the 'brightest witch of their generation'. He could get a reaction from anyone using the mere sound of his voice, and he loved the power. Event he great Granger wasn't immune to his harsh tone and biting words.

With their new shared room as head boy and head girl, he would have more than enough time to piss her off.

"Careful Granger, wouldn't want to break your precious books" Draco remarked from his bed, watching Hermione angrily upack her books, slamming them on the table. It was obvious that she wasn't very happy about their new room arrangements, and Draco wasn't very pleased either. The idea of rooming with Granger for a year was almost more annoying than Oliver Wood when he talked about the Gryffindor quidditch team.

"I'll break you, Malfoy!" She insulted, voice sharp as she picked up the books and placed them in the trunk at the foot of her bed, which was across the room from his. Draco smirked the smirk that she hated so much, shaking his head.

"I know you have more books than friends, but that's your fault. Don't get mad at me"

Hermione didn't reply, she simply glared daggers at him before turning away. Pride filled him as she ignored him, but that didn't feel like enough. This wasn't a big enough rise. He wanted more. And he was going to get more. He wanted a real rise out of her, he wanted her to yell and scream and get annoyed.

"What about Weasley and Potter?" Draco asked, sitting up straight in his bed. "Who is going to keep them from chasing their tails for hours?"

He knew that insulting Harry and Ron, her best friends, was a definite way to get her angry. Hermione scoffed, sitting on the ground and organizing the book stacks in her trunk. "They aren't dogs, Malfoy. Better than you, they are"

"Weasley isn't worth half of me"  
"You're nothing compared to him" Hermione turned and glared at him, the angriest glare Draco had ever gotten from her. Pride in his stomach, Draco stood from his bed and walked towards her.

"Got the hots for Weasley, do you Granger?" He asked, Hermione remaining silent. Draco chuckled, kneeling down next to her. "What's the matter? Crookshanks got your tongue?"

Hermione grabbed a book in her trunk and took a swing at his head. Draco reacted but not fast enough. The large book connected with his forehead and sent him sprawling backwards, barely. Hermione, quite pleased with herself, smiled. Draco pushed any feelings of embarrassment away, standing back up and scowling at her.

"Who do you think you are, touching me?"  
Hermione obviously didn't like that. She, as well, got to her feet and crossed her arms over her chest.  
"What are you, royalty? It was self defense"  
"Self defense?" Draco exclaimed, rubbing his forehead. "I didn't even touch you!"  
"Well you were asking for it!" She protested, turning away from him and back to her trunk.

"I could get you into so much trouble!" Draco snapped, kneeling down to her level and glaring at her.  
"Going to run to your daddy again, Malfoy?" she spoke in a mocking voice, glaring at him.

Malfoy wasn't used to her fighting back. Things were much easier when they were first and second years. She'd just get insulted, say something stupid and walk off. She'd started insulting him back or just plain ignoring him, but never like this. He liked it, her fighting back. It meant he was making more of an effect, and giving him more of a challenge to accomplish. Plus, where was the fun in insulting someone when all they did was get annoyed and walked away? He liked making her angry, and he definitely liked hearing whatever rubbish insult she thought would hurt him.

"You have quite the mouth, Granger" Draco smirked, Hermione rolling her eyes. "What's the matter, afraid i'll out-wit you?"

This got a laugh from him. "You? Out-wit me? Please. You couldn't out-wit a garden troll" He replied, putting as much emphasis on how amusing this was to him.

Draco knew that wasn't true. As much as he hated her, as much as she annoyed him, she was one of the only kids at this school he didn't consider to be a total idiot. She was the head of their year every single year, Draco always one spot behind her. Thinking about this only made him more angry, only wanting to tick her off more.

"You're pretentious and arrogant and all around rude!" Hermione snapped, walking over to the door and ignoring him. "All you do is insult people and it's childish! Grow up, Malfoy!" She snapped, not giving Draco a chance to reply before she slammed the door behind her.

Draco smiled, but his heart wasn't in it. This wasn't nearly as fun when she left, especially when there wasn't an audience to laugh at her or egg Draco on. His favorite place to cause a scene with her was always outdoors or in a classroom, Crabbe and Goyle around him to laugh and smirk.

But still, getting a rise out of her was one of Draco's favorite things.


	2. Frustration

Hermione ignored him for the next few days. Absolutely ignored him. She didn't speak a single word to him, didn't reply when he insulted her, she didn't even look in his direction. He made a few snide comments to her every now and then, seeing if he could get her to snap, but she just turned her nose up and walked away. This wasn't nearly as fun as he thought it would be.

If she wasn't going to talk to him, fine! He was more than happy to not hear that annoying, shrill voice of her's anyways. Since it was obvious that Draco wasn't going to get any rise out of her by talking, he took to messing with her side of the room.

Granger, that big know-it-all, spent all her time in the library. Sometimes she'd take a stroll to Gryffindor tower to see Potter and Weasley, but she spent her time in the library ninety percent of the time. This gave Draco as much time as he wanted to make her side of the room look like the Whomping Willow got a swing at it.

It started with little stuff. Messing up the alphabetical order of her books, putting clothes in different drawers of her dresser, hiding all her parchment rolls under her pillow, etc. He was hoping this would make her snap, but the only satisfaction Draco got was the sigh of annoyance she made when she noticed these little tricks. Draco, determined and a bit frustrated, kicked it up a notch. The 'little stuff' had soon escalated to much bigger, noticeable annoyances. Dumping her books in the bathroom sink, casting spells on her parchment that made it impossible to write on, pouring foul smelling potions on her bed, so on and so forth.

Draco would do all these things and then go about his business, waiting for Hermione to come back and see his masterpieces. He couldn't deny the excitement he got when he heard her coming upstairs to their shared room, knowing that she had to give him so reaction besides that disappointing sigh of annoyance.

_Nothing. Absolutely nothing._

Draco, as much as it displeased him to admit, was stumped. He did the most foul things he could without getting expelled, but all he got was that stupid sigh. It was frustrating beyond belief and he spent so much time thinking of things to do that it distracted him. He nearly walked into the door on his way to Potions class while thinking of some annoying spell he could cast on her. He forgot to do his Charms homework while he spent his time collecting slugs to drop in her bed. Even Crabbe and Goyle, the idiots, ran out of suggestions for him. Goyle even had the audacity to tell Draco to 'give it up'. He wasn't going to let Hermione win. No way. He had to get to her.

The only thing more annoying than Hermione's lack of emotion was that damn cat, Crookshanks. It mewed at all times of the day and sometimes randomly screeched sounds that didn't even sound vaguely cat-like. It got bright red fur all over Draco's bed, as if defending Hermione in some way. The cat hissed every time Draco came remotely near it, once scratching Draco's leg as if there was no tomorrow when he got up to use the bathroom one night.

He didn't want to talk to her, not until he got the reaction he wanted, but he was too annoyed with Crookshanks, whom had shredded up his essay for their defense against the dark arts class.

"Can't you control your monster, Granger?" Draco snapped, throwing his essay, or the pieces of his essay, on her bed. Hermione looked up casually, as if he only came over to merely speak of the weather.

"You don't have any proof. For all I know, you could have shredded up your own essay" She replied, looking back at the book in her lap with an expressionless face. Draco could feel the frustration bubbling in his chest, but he tried his best not to show it. If she was going to be an expressionless git, then why shouldn't he? Two could play this game.

"Why would I shred up my own essay? Are you mad?"  
Hermione scoffed. "Have you read your writing?"  
Draco was internally fuming. He forced himself to remain level-headed. He wasn't going to let her win, even if his head exploded.

"You wouldn't know good writing if it hit you in the face" He snapped, which he knew wasn't true because she had great essay structure and- no, not the point.

"Must I need to hit you in the face? Again?" She replied, not even looking up at him when she spoke. This, that stupid action of disrespect, made Draco madder than anything else she could have done. She could have defiled his entire side of the room, but that wouldn't hold a candle to how angry her not looking at him when she spoke made him.

"I didn't know Weasley wasn't the only one born in a barn, Granger. Look at me when you speak" Draco was trying hard to match her expressionless composition, but he could hear the annoyance in his own face. Hermione must have noticed, because there was a small pleased smile on her face before she flipped a page in her book.

"You should get your anger problems checked out, Malfoy. Hate for you to do something drastic" He could hear the amusement in her words as she refused to look at him, as if her eyes were glued to the book in her lap.

Draco audibly groaned in aggravation. All calmness he had seemed to fly out the window.

"Whatever, Granger. Go back to your stupid book. You're not good for anything else" He snapped in the coldest, cruelest tone he could manage, making a big show of storming angrily to the bathroom, slamming the door behind him. Draco, once hidden in the bathroom, surveyed himself in the mirror. His lips were curved into a scowl that highly resembled his father (which he didn't like very much, for that exact reason). Besides the scowl, the only thing that caught his eye was the redness of his cheeks. Wait, not red. Pink.

Now that he thought of it, his face did feel very warm. He brought a pale hand to his cheek and felt his skin, which was warm to the touch. Shouldn't it be red? Red to represent his anger for the girl outside the door? Cheeks only turned pink when people were- no. No. he was not_ flirting_ with Granger. The thought brought nausea to his stomach. Draco, thoroughly confused, couldn't bear to look at his pink cheeks anymore. He turned on the sink and cupped his hands, splashing his face with water until he was sure there was no trace of the pink tint of his facial tissue. He sucked in a deep breath, put on a look of contentedness, and strutted out of the bathroom.

Another book flew at his head the second he closed the door behind him. Luckily he saw this one coming and ducked out of the way, the only sound being the clank of the book as it clattered to the floor.

"That's for the potion in my bedsheets!" Hermione's voice followed, the shrillness making Draco grin. From the lack of words he'd heard from her recently, he couldn't help but be flooded with relief that he could still tick her off. After all, it was Draco's favorite thing.

"You missed" was Draco's only reply, walking happily over to his bed and taking out his homework, pride swelling in his chest.


End file.
